Getting Zinc-Biofortified Rice on to Plates in Bangladesh.

Biofortification of rice with Zn is important because rice is a staple food for many people and Zn deficiency is one of the malnutrition factors underlying stunting and poor immunity to infectious disease. Bangladesh is the priority country for high-Zn rice in the HarvestPlus program because of the prevalence of inadequate Zn intake and nutrition survey data indicating that 50-70% of daily Zn intake comes from rice. Prevalence of zinc deficiency in Bangladesh is as high as 45% in children under 5. The first high-grain-Zn rice variety was released in Bangladesh in 2013, and a second has been released in 2014. Some of the challenges involved in achieving this successful first varietal release included a puzzling environmental effect on the amount of Zn taken up into grains and a discrepancy about preparing rice grain samples for analysis vs. preparing them for cooking. As we go forward from releasing high-Zn rice varieties to increasing the Zn intake of susceptible populations, the challenges include providing seed to those who need it, getting it appropriately milled, and managing public perception of Zn-enriched rice.